Political debates are critical to public policy and the political process. In addition to showcasing candidates’ differences, they highlight the issues that are important to voters, which often leads to shifts in policy. For example, public debates have played a role in changing attitudes about affirmative action and the Second Amendment.
In the past, political debates were largely informal gatherings or partisan-based events. They became more structured after the emergence of political parties, when they started to be used as a platform for expressing party positions and competing visions for the country’s future.
The debate format was formalized in the late 1980s when presidential campaigns began relying on them to convey their messages and test their opponents’ abilities. By 1988, a commission had been formed to sponsor the debates and negotiate everything from the dates to the staging with the campaigns. This allowed for the creation of memorable moments in the campaign, such as President George W. Bush’s “Willy Horton” attack against Michael Dukakis, in which he portrayed the former Massachusetts governor as soft on crime.
The Commission sets the formats for the debates, selects the moderators, and identifies the venues. It also ensures that the debates are free of charge to broadcasters and sponsors, as required by Federal Election Campaign Act regulations. The Commission is also responsible for establishing the nonpartisan voter education goal of the debates and ensuring that the candidates invited to participate meet its pre-established objective criteria.
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